CPI will combine Positive Options’ solid position in UK healthcare market with its existing strength in the education market, using the best elements of each respective program to improve overall quality and boost CPI’s local reputation.

CPI will enhance Positive Options’ course materials and offerings while using its sales and marketing expertise to grow the business, with the goal of becoming the leading training company in the UK across multiple end markets.

Of Note:Based in the UK, Positive Options provides aggressive-behavior management training in the British healthcare, social care and education markets. Positive Options directly trains individuals, conducts train the trainer programs and receives licensing fees from Approved Training Centers. Its core program, Management of Actual or Potential Aggression (MAPA), is a unique offering in the market in its methods and philosophy. Positive Options is committed to offering strategies to assist organizations and staff in providing care to individuals with a variety of complex needs and trains over 25,000 individuals each year.

The acquisition allows CPI and Positive Options to continue the development and expansion of their current training platforms to deliver a wide range of complementary programs and support services for a broad spectrum of customers. Like CPI, Positive Options has a sterling reputation and is accredited in the UK by the British Institute of Learning Disabilities. Positive Options has tremendous experience working with the UK’s National Health Services, which should help CPI expand its services to the agency.

Riverside has held Brookfield, Wisconsin-based CPI since September 2006. The firm specializes in the safe management of disruptive and assaultive behavior. Since 1980, more than 5.4 million professionals have participated in CPI training, and thousands of organizations worldwide have successfully implemented CPI’s unique behavior management techniques. The transaction is Riverside’s 21st education and training acquisition, and the second one this year. Riverside’s team of professionals dedicated to education and training works with Riverside’s global resources to find and grow the most compelling opportunities in the sector.

Quotes: Anne Hayes, Riverside Partner: “This is a powerful combination as Positive Options has developed an exceptional training program and will expand CPI’s position in the UK healthcare market. While Positive Options has performed very well by continuously introducing new offerings and winning new customers, we see tremendous opportunity for growth by leveraging CPI’s outstanding infrastructure to reach a broader customer base and support ongoing training.”

Tony Jace, CPI CEO: “Positive Options brings us an incredibly strong player in the UK. The acquisition creates a partnership unrivaled in the behavior management and violence-reduction training industry that greatly benefits current customers of both companies and the people they serve. We look forward to growing our service offerings and presence in the UK and beyond.”

The Riverside Company (www.riversidecompany.com or www.riversideeurope.com)The Riverside Company is a global private equity firm focused on acquiring leading small and medium-sized enterprises (with a value of up to $200 million) and partnering with strong management teams to enhance the success of its companies through acquisitions and organic growth. Since its founding in 1988, the firm has invested in 226 transactions with a total enterprise value of $5.0 billion/€4.2 billion. The investment portfolio in North America, Europe and Asia includes 70 companies with annual sales totaling $3.3 billion/€2.5 billion, EBITDA of $506 million/€384 million and more than 13,000 employees (June 2009). Riverside offers the resources to complete acquisitions smoothly - thanks to its more than $3.0 billion/€2.4 billion in assets under management, its more than 180 professionals in 18 offices (Atlanta, Brussels, Budapest, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Luxembourg, Madrid, Munich, New York, Prague, San Francisco, Seoul, Stockholm, Tokyo and Warsaw) and its longstanding relationships with partner lenders. According to Thomson Venture Economics, eight of Riverside’s nine mature funds rank in the top 25% of all funds (as of 30 June 2009). The firm’s investors include the world’s leading pension funds, endowments, funds of funds, insurance companies and banks.

Positive Options Limited (www.positive-options.com)Positive Options has been a leading provider of diagnostic services, education, and training since 2004. The company conducts training throughout the UK as well as Ireland and Finland. Its proprietary programs are applicable for a broad group of healthcare workers, social care workers and educators of those with behavioral issues.